WASHINGTON – Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, submitted written testimony today to the President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice highlighting the need for transformative reform of policing at both the federal and state levels. The U.S. Department of Justice had invited civil rights groups to a forum in a last-ditch effort to legitimize the Commission, but the groups have cited the department’s failure to address the pandemic and offered policy solutions to respond to the fatal police shootings in recent weeks.

WASHINGTON – Lena Zwarensteyn, Fair Courts Campaign director at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the Senate Judiciary Committee’s vote to advance the nomination of Cory Wilson to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit:

WASHINGTON – Citing our nation’s longstanding need to address state-sponsored violence targeting Black people, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights joined over 200 organizations on this National Day of Mourning in demanding full transparency from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding the findings from its criminal investigation into George Floyd’s death. In a second letter, more than 200 organizations also urged DOJ to pursue a federal civil rights investigation into the fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor.

WASHINGTON – Lena Zwarensteyn, Fair Courts Campaign Director at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the Senate Judiciary Committee’s vote to advance the nomination of Justin Walker to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit:

NEW YORK (June 1, 2020) -- The leaders of the nation’s leading civil rights and racial justice organizations have issued a joint statement in response to the unrest ravaging America’s cities. These leaders and their organizations are:

WASHINGTON – The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and 400 other civil rights organizations today called on congressional leadership to swiftly rectify the legacy of white supremacy and anti-black racism that has led to police violence against Black people across our country. The group requested a meeting with congressional leadership to discuss urgently needed reforms that ensure police officers live up to their oath to protect and serve all people in the United States.

The House-passed COVID-19 relief package answers the call of civil rights groups to lift and protect the hardest hit communities and our democratic institutions as this pandemic continues to wreak havoc on economic security, health, families, and lives. It is now up to the Senate to act.

WASHINGTON – Noting an increase in discriminatory policing practices during COVID-19, The Leadership Conference Education Fund released principles that provide actionable recommendations for law enforcement agencies across the country to better protect the health and safety of communities and officers during the pandemic and beyond. The principles, Public Safety During COVID-19 and Beyond: Recommendations for Protecting Public Health and Our Civil Rights, received endorsements from more than 100 civil rights organizations and law enforcement groups, including The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP), and Chiefs of Police Carmen Best of Seattle, Washington, and Rashall M. Brackney of Charlottesville, Virginia.